AUBURN, Alabama -- Gus Malzahn isn't the type of coach who slows things down, but he did just that Friday and will do so again today at Auburn.

The Tigers' coach divided their first preseason practice into three parts Friday. The first part focused on the veterans, allowing the newcomers and younger players to watch and learn from their peers. They then shifted to special teams, working on punt and kick drills in the usual fashion, and the last third of practice was all about the newcomers. They worked by themselves on the field as the older players looked on and provided some guidance.

"We really slowed things down and tried to spend quality time with our young guys at every position. It just felt like we needed to do that, and we'll do the same thing (Saturday) and then we'll see where we're at," Malzahn said.

Malzahn's uptempo practices -- and his hurry-up, no-huddle offense -- could lead to frustration for newcomers trying to keep up with the pace while executing their assignments. There are plenty of first-timers looking to make a big splash early, and most eyes are focused on quarterbacks Jeremy Johnson and Nick Marshall, and defensive ends Carl Lawson and Elijah Daniel.

"My experience is, there's a lot of guys that are talented enough to play early," said Malzahn, "but there's a lot of them that the moment's a little too big and it takes them a little bit to get used to the speed of the game and the mental grind and everything that goes with that. But that's what we're looking for. We're trying to figure out the ones that can handle it, and we'll try to put them in as many of these situations as we can, so we can figure that out sooner rather than later."

Malzahn is the type of coach who would like to figure out a two-deep as soon as possible (or at least know who could make an impact in the fall by the middle of two-a-day practices). The first week of preseason camp is especially crucial.

It's not often Malzahn slows things down.

"Instead of throwing you all the way in there, we're just going to show you, 'Hey, this is how we run, this is how we run to the ball, this is not acceptable, this is acceptable,'" senior defensive tackle Jeffrey Whitaker said. "And then when we leave, they get to kind of repeat what we just did."

The quarterbacks did just that, which helped considering the even number (four) that includes two newcomers. Simply put, it allowed Malzahn to divvy repetitions evenly between the foursome competing for the starting job. Kiehl Frazier and Jonathan Wallace, the two veterans, took snaps with the newcomers examining their every move in the first third of practice. The newcomers got their turn in the final third portion of practice. There were "a few mishaps," Malzahn said, but he was happy with their first day on the field.

"They both have very live arms," Malzahn said. "The ball comes out of their hands very well. They get the ball out quick, which is very critical to what we do offensively."

Malzahn encouraged veterans at all positions to help bring the newcomers along, even those competing against them for playing time.

"Our veteran guys, and they know we've got some talented young guys, but they are really trying to help them," Malzahn said. "We talked to our team about coming together. I'm very proud of our old guys as far as the aspect of helping their teammates and really being there for the young guys. That means a lot going forward."